John McCain's Acceptance Speech  —  The following is a transcript of Senator John McCain's acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, as recorded by CQ Transcriptions.  —  MCCAIN: Thank you.  Thank you all very much.  Thank you.  —  Tonight, I have a privilege given few Americans: the privilege of

MYSTERY SOLVED!  —  A lot of people were asking tonight: what the hell was that mansion up behind John McCain tonight during the first part of the speech?  As I noted below, the TV close-ups only showed McCain's head against the grass in the picture, which made it look like he was reprising his famed green screen performance.

More than 40 million people see Palin speech  —  NEW YORK (AP) - Barack Obama apparently isn't the only “rock star” in presidential politics this year.  —  After days of intense media coverage about Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin's qualifications, more than 40 million Americans tuned …

Palin Accuses ‘Obama/Biden Democrats’ of Attacking Her Family, But Campaign Can't Name One  —  Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin sent out a fundraising solicitation today that charged that “the Obama/Biden Democrats have been vicious in their attacks directed toward me, my family and John McCain.”

Angry readers dump Us Magazine over Palin  —  Plus: Britney's mom defends self in book; ‘Thunder’ is going down  —  Three celebrity weeklies — OK!, People and Us Weekly — featured Sarah Palin on their cover, but one of those magazines is reportedly losing subscribers because of it.  —  The Scoop

The death of a taboo  —  ST. PAUL — One of the most enduring taboos in American politics, the airing of graphic images from the September 11 attacks in a partisan context, died today.  It was nearly seven years old.  —  The informal prohibition, which had been occasionally threatened …

EXCLUSIVE: In New Book, Woodward Says Bush ‘Failed to Lead,’ Even as Surge Succeeded  —  WASHINGTON — Bob Woodward, who wrote two books praising President Bush and then a third harshly criticizing him, is out with a fourth tome that renders a mixed verdict on Bush, lauding the president's surge …

Republicans Lack Heart!  —  Ann and Nancy Wilson are pissed at the Republican Party and have fired off a cease and desist letter to the McCain/Palin campaign.  —  Specifically, the Heart women are upset that the GOP has used their classic “Barracuda” as a theme song for Sarah Palin.

Westmoreland calls Obama ‘uppity’  —  Georgia Republican Rep. Lynn Westmoreland used the racially-tinged term “uppity” to describe Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama Thursday.  —  Westmoreland was discussing vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin's speech with reporters outside …

Obama: Surge Succeeded Beyond ‘Wildest Dreams’  —  The troop surge in Iraq has been more successful than anyone could have imagined, Barack Obama conceded Thursday in his first-ever interview on FOX News' “The O'Reilly Factor.”  —  As recently as July, the Democratic presidential candidate declined …

My Quick Take  —  Don't focus on the oratory.  If Mark Salter wanted to, he could have written prose for the ages, but it wouldn't have seemed true to McCain.  Don't focus on the delivery.  The election isn't going to be decided on speech-making ability.  Focus on the theme—a populist fighter for you.

Ways To Win … This week's polling continues to show voters waiting to decide about Sarah Palin (see yesterday's poll on Palin).  But in interviewing done yesterday, 83 percent of registered voters said that spouse and family of a candidate will not affect their votes.

The anti-Palin e-mail  —  I've received some 50 copies of a long e-mail from a woman named Anne Kilkenny of Wasilla, and it may be the most potent attack on Sarah Palin out there, bouncing around the Internet at the viral speed of an Obama-Muslim rumor.  —  The Anchorage Daily News confirms …

YOU CAN CALL A WOMAN A BAD MOTHER FOR NOT FORCING HER DAUGHTER TO HAVE AN ABORTION, AND CLAIM THAT THE SAME WOMAN DIDN'T ACTUALLY GIVE BIRTH TO HER OWN SON...  ...but don't you dare ask what a community organizer actually does.  —  A commenter at QandO was nice enough to explain the difference between Obama Black Nixon and Palin:

Green Screens, Protests Disrupt McCain's Speech  —  Susan Davis reports from St. Paul, Minn., on the Republican convention.  —  Republican nominee John McCain's acceptance speech here got off to a rocky start as the same green screen that was so ridiculed during a June 3 speech appeared again behind …

Obama's Biggest Mistakes (So Far)  —  It's game on. 59 days until the election.  I don't think this week's polls are indicative of much since both sides will be rallied by their respective conventions.  I think we need two weeks before polls become reliable indicators of voters' intentions in November.

House Chairman Failed to Report $75,000 in Income  —  Representative Charles B. Rangel has earned more than $75,000 in rental income from a villa he has owned in the Dominican Republic since 1988, but never reported it on his federal or state tax returns, according to a lawyer for the congressman and documents from the resort.